Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The covered market of the Touquet-Paris-Plage, located at the crossing of the streets of Metz and Jean Monnet, was built between 1931 and 1932 on the former Place de la Demi-Lune. Designed by architects Henri-Léon Bloch (a young Marseille talent) and Henri-Paul Nénot (Grand Prix de Rome), it adopts a semi-circular shape with a large arcade spanning rue Jean Monnet, an ingenious solution to unify two symmetrical sections separated by this path. The neo-regionalist style is manifested by the use of local materials: Baincthun stone for underlay, Tyrolean cream coating, fake wooden panels, and flat Boulonnais tiles covering a pentue roof. The interior, rationally organized, includes a thread of masonry stalls decorated with blue and white ceramic tiles, as well as a large cellar and cold basements planned from the beginning.

The monumental clock, integrated into a bowl-window at the top of the central gable, takes over the geai ass motif, an architectural fantasy inspired by local houses. The structural farms, deliberately oversized, emphasize the structural power of the building. Inaugurated in April 1932, the market underwent two major changes: the transformation of the south wing into a fish industry in 1960, and the replacement of the cover in 1982-1983. Ranked a Historic Monument since 24 January 1996 (façades, roofs and hall), it embodies the alliance between regionalism and modernity, while remaining a living place, animated by the joyful noises of market days.

Before its construction, the market was held around the chapel Saint-André (future place de l'Hôtel des Postes), where the first official market in Paris-Plage was organized on 1 June 1896. Initially free to attract traders, he became a payer in 1899, with rights proportional to the occupied facade. In 1924, the chapel itself was transformed into a covered market, a precursor to the present building. The contest launched by the municipality in 1927 ran the Bloch and Nenot project, the realization of which covered two urban perspectives: one towards the sea and the other towards the garden of Ypres.

The building, owned by the commune, is distinguished by its interior decoration of blue and white tiles, its masonry benches, and its flattened semi-circle windows illuminating the gallery. The architect Bloch evoked in his unpublished autobiography the challenges posed by the cross-sectional street, solved by the central arch in the middle of the circle. This market, both utilitarian and symbolic, reflects the seaside identity of the Touquet, between regional heritage and architectural audacity.

External links